credit:Pixabay
As a youngster I was fortunate enough to be introduced to this lovely game. Over the years I developed a relatively good skill at both attacking and defending scenarios in my mind. Of course, the game was a challenge at the time, and I had no idea the thought process it fostered would also have transferable applications.
The Age of Problem Solving
Today we have encyclopedias (and more!) at our finger tips. The traditional physical and logistical barriers to learning are gone (we practically carry a library in our pockets now). This has been replaced with the 'drinking from the fire hose' phenomenon. Yes, the noise of information and opinion on the Internet makes it difficult, but this challenge is simply a matter of the right curating to match the motivation and level of learners. Could Steemit some day fill this need....most definitely. The guided tours for learning will become the next area of growth in the digital age.
The platform has the basis for filtering out noise as well as paywalls. You can very easily imagine a future where gifted knowledgeable individuals will share their expertise to those interested in whatever the subject may be. Compensation (if desired) is a function of Steemit's defined algorithm, and as such there is open transparency.
Back to Chess
The various scenarios that two players must imagine when playing can exercise the flexible thinking necessary to solve complex problems. Today's economy generally sees firms and individuals create systematic approaches to products and services - a legacy of the industrial past. This works when trying to optimize for mass production, but is less effective in niche situations that require something other than the one size fits as many as possible paradigm. From digital to new manufacturing, to custom agriculture, the trend to micro targeting is clear. After all we are unique individuals, so why not have custom products?
Complex problems are the philosophical opposite of Six Sigma lean and repeatable thinking. Hence my fondness for the game of chess - which by design has differing results based on the moves of either opponent - facilitates a mental state of flexibility and out of the box thought.
Today's modern abundance of games (video and otherwise) no doubt gives kids far more interesting (and entertaining) options. It is however, the simple imaginary process of chess that focuses the mind inward into scenario simulation that has such a profound effect on creative solution thining. It would be a shame to lose this type of growth opportunity, and no doubt some of the video games being created are quite rich in their possibilities to fill this niche.
In future posts, I would like to explore options and appetite to incorporate a chess application into Steemit (or perhaps even a brand new STEEM-specific game some day). We could even try to arrange Steem tournaments with prize pools shared among the winning participants (of course, we will need to ensure they are not robots!)